How To Find and Create an Entrepreneur Community

If you follow me on Instagram you have probably heard me talk about my entrepreneur community or tribe a lot. I’m a huge believer in having a strong entrepreneur community around you that will push you and encourage you to chase those goals and dreams. But one of the biggest questions I get from other entrepreneurs is how do I find a business community and tribe?

Why is an entrepreneur community important?

Before we dig into how to find/create one, I want to talk to you why you need a community of entrepreneurs around you. Below are the 3 reasons I believe everyone needs an entrepreneur tribe.

Accountability

Have you ever tried to achieve a goal on your own? If you have you know it’s hard to hold yourself accountable and we tend to quit on ourselves before we will quit on someone else. A community of entrepreneurs acts as an accountability partner and holds you responsible for achieving those things you said you wanted to. Did you know that you are 95% more likely to achieve a goal by having an accountability partner according to the American Society of Training and Development? 

Learning, Connecting & Growing

Your tribe will probably have a diverse group of skills, expertise and a network you would have never had access to without them. When you bring together a great group of minds you will be blown away how much faster you will grow from their unique knowledge and perspectives. I’m in multiple entrepreneur groups with entrepreneurs from different industries and it has helped my business soar!

Someone Who Gets It

Along with helping you achieve the goals you have been wanting to hit, your entrepreneur tribe will also be a listening ear and probably one of the few people in your life that understands what you are going through. Have you ever tried talking about a business problem with someone who isn’t a business owner? Typically the conversation ends in you being frustrated with the advice they give you and regretting you asked them in the first place. Your entrepreneur community will help you work through these and be there to support you through the wins and loses.

How to find a community of entrepreneurs.

Now that we have talked about why you need a community of like-minded business owners, let’s talk about how to find an entrepreneur tribe and get connected with the right people.

#1 Join a local business group.

The first step I took towards creating my entrepreneur community was joining a local business group. I joined a community called The Rising Tide Society that is targeted toward creative entrepreneurs that hosts a monthly meet-up in cities all across the world. This was a great way to get connected with people in my industry and build relationships I still have today. Joining this group connected me to one of my Biz BFFs that I have had bi-weekly accountability meetings with for the past 1.5 years.

If you are looking for a group in your area then do a little google search or follow other entrepreneurs in your area and take note of what groups/meetings they attend. If you live in a remote area or can’t commit the time to in-person meetings a lot of these groups have online or Facebook groups you can join.

#2 Follow people on social media and reach out to them.

This one is probably the most uncomfortable, but super impactful! Search instagram or other social platforms for entrepreneurs that are at a similar level as you and reach out and extend an invitation to meet up or hop on a phone call. One of my Biz BFFs did this exact thing to me. She followed me on instagram for a while and eventually sent me an email asking to meet. 2 years later we are still talking on the phone every other week and holding each other accountable.

One thing to caution you on is reaching out to entrepreneurs that are significantly ahead of you in their business journey and asking them to coffee to “pick their brain” – I can tell you this is a major turn off and being a girl that gets her fair share of these emails, it just makes me feel like people just want to use me and my time. So before reaching out to someone make sure you can add value to them and their lives it and it wont be a one way street.

#3 Attend a business conference, retreat or mastermind.

This is probably my favorite way to connect with entrepreneurs because its an immersion experience. When people are all put together in a room, trying to achieve a similar outcome the level of connections increase. There is so much more power in being in the room rather than behind a computer or a phone.

I’ve attended many conferences, events, retreats and joined masterminds and have always walked away with a new connection or nugget of information. If you’re curious how to get the most out of an in-person experience then read my post on attending a conference and getting your money’s worth!

Make sure you stay in touch with the connections you make and try to turn them into accountability partners or mini mastermind groups. And I may be biased but attending The Haven Conference is a great way to get to know other entrepreneurs and join our exclusive #HavenTribe

A final tip for you is to not fear rejection. I’ve reached out to entrepreneurs before and tried to build relationships and have been turned down for many reasons. But don’t let one person’s rejection discourage you from trying to build a new relationship or reaching back out to them in the future.

I hope everyone gets intertwined with the best entrepreneur community! If you enjoyed this post then check out my recap from the West Olive Haven Conference.

All photos by Hetler Photography